some of the best thai food in bangkok is on soi 14 at suda ...

i've been eating at suda for 19 years and never had a bad meal!

one of the only thai restaurants in downtown bkk to be listed in the lonely planet guide book is one of suda's claims to fame, and a well deserved done. considered to be thai/chinese to a degree, and not strictly that, this ope-air restaurant is packed with local office people for lunch and tourists, expats and locals at night. the fact that the locals swarm this place in the day time is the real testament to the food they prepare.

the kitchen is helmed by a chef that i have always seen through the kitchen door in all my 19 years of going there, he is family. he produces 5 or 6 plates of each dish at a time in a huge over-sized wok that never stops giving. when the place is full to capacity you may wait a bit for a dish to arrive, but you will never regret having waited. the classic thai dishes such as tom kaa gai, tom yum kung, phad krapow moo sop and gaeng keowan, to name just 4, are top shelf and suda's "secret" recipe for cashew chicken is unlike any you will find anywhere in the world, let alone thailand. i think it has red curry past in it and there is nothing but succulent white meat, cashews and this sticky sauce. no veggies to confuse or adulterate this dish.

they do another classic thai chicken dish that you will not find most everywhere. morsels of marinated chicken wrapped in toei leaves and then deep fried. the aroma of the toei leaves is infused into the caramelized chicken to create a unique flavor unobtainable in other dishes. be careful, its hot! (not spicy hot, temp hot.)

it really doesn't matter what you order here, whether you're a party of 1 or 2 or a tour group of 18+, suda restaurant always delivers. the turn over is so great that everything is fresh and depleted and restocked each day. you can see the staff endlessly prepping veggies off to the side.

the owners are always present and khun suda greets and take orders from everyone personally 99% of the time. there is only 1 suda, no branches, no need to be confused, just satisfied.

image borrowed from here.

 image borrowed from here.

 image borrowed from here.

image borrowed from here.  

follow the link to a good article about suda and some more food photos.

the person in the green blouse is khun suda the restaurant's namesake.

 image borrowed from here. 

image borrowed from here.

 click on the image above to enlarge the map.

ps - i believe if you have a very large group they will reserve a table for you: +66 2 229 4518

if you follow this link you will go to a website that has a google map with suda on it. you will see that of the 18 reviews shown on that site only 2 people say its not what it is cracked up to be and did not meet their expectations. the average rating is 4.5 out of 5. not bad by any standard.

sandwiches are life ...

i have always been into sandwiches, eating them and serving them. i once managed a deli in boston, massachusettes that served an average of 3,000 sandwiches a week to yippies in the financial district. plus all the other stuff a deli serves. like 10,000+ cups of coffee a week.

as you will see from the image, sandwiches are serious business ...

click the image for a large view

or click on this link.

full credit goes to my friend paul who drew this graphic with his AutoCAD program.

note: despite spelling copyright incorrectly on the image, it still is.

fantasy menu: tropical mediterranean, or as i like to call it, provincial rim

i have an archive of about 100 menus i have engineered over the course of my career. i have decided to punch them up and post them as an ongoing series. this is the first, i hope you like it.

this particular menu is one that i generated 10 years ago for a client in phuket, thailand. after working on it for close to 2 months, conceptualizing, compiling recipes, sourcing all the ingredients, and ordering all the kitchen equipment and place settings specifically for it ... the client decided to change the theme from tropical influenced mediterranean to thai fusion. this menu, in its entirety never made it to the table, individual dishes have shown up in other venues over the years.

click on the image to see a larger version
and if that doesn't work
click here.

niu's on silom jazz blues bar and restaurant, bkk

i have followed chef marco cammarata as he has deftly navigated his way across bangkok's restaurant scene.

i first ate marco's cuisine when he was at the sheraton grand sukhumvit hotel here in bangkok. he was there for several years and he left of his own accord, which is rare for bangkok hotel chefs. i then followed him to a new venue where he was again in charge of the cuisine at the paragon center. this last incarnation of his at niu's is by far the best, and a perfect fit.

his menus are always varied italian and always a joy to not only read, but of course to eat from. the rather extensive wine list is a perfect match as well. the surroundings, whether indoors or out are tastefully designed and well attended by his staff who are quite knowledgeable regarding what they are serving. the music is superb when it is live and the recoded music is also well chosen for this type of venue.

on my last visit i had a starter of a chilled vegetable terrine with goat cheese that included beet root, pumpkin and carrot all wrapped in a cabbage leaf. it is moistened with green apple and tomato reductions that accent it and its small side of greens perfectly. i would say it is one of the top ten things i have ever had the pleasure to eat, anywhere.

i next had a half an order of fresh oysters au gratin. again, perfectly cooked and the topping was not so heavy as to obscure the taste and freshness of the oysters themselves.

for a main dish i opted for the new zealand rack of lamb. again, simply divine and cooked to a perfect medium rare just as i like it. it is sitting in a wonderful pool of pureed potato and veggies that is indescribably delicious. i am a firm believer that certain foods must be eaten with your hands and lamb chops fall into this class for me. as i removed the meat from the bone the ever so slight char gave the meat a taste that sets niu's chef apart from the mob of italians who claim to be cooking authentic cuisine here in bangkok's plethora of italian restaurants. (Truism: just because you were born somewhere does not mean you can cook the food that comes from there.)

not only is he a chef of great acclaim, he is also one of the most gracious and generous hosts i have met in all my years of dining around the world. he makes it a point to meet and greet all guests and offer them not only his assistance in ordering, but his ego allows him to customize any dish to your taste or dietary requirement. another rare trait in chefs as far as i have experienced. his ability to match wines to the food is also great. he simply wants you to have the best experience that you can have.

rarely do i have room to make it through to ordering desert, but on the occasions that i have they have always been the perfect ending to the meal. they do all the baking and deserts on premise and all the little side dishes and garnishes are always up to the same par as the dishes themselves.

although not a cheap or inexpensive place to eat, i have to say that it is true value for money spent. a similar meal in new york or europe would cost 3 or 4 times the price, and the service would probably not be the same either.

this cuisine is not overly garnished or presented in such away as to detract from the original intent of the dishes themselves. this is what i would call nuova cucina italiana, new italian kitchen. un-muddled nor heavy handed, this food teases and caresses the willing palette with new flavors and textures. world class cuisine for sure.

as i said in the beginning, i follow this chef wherever he hangs his hat and he has never let me down.

ps - if you like risotto, try some at niu's, you will be pleased.

• 661 Floor 1-2, Baan Silom Arcade | Silom Road (between Soi 17 and Soi 19), Bangkok 10500, Thailand
• 66 2 266 5333
• www.niusonsilom.com 

originally posted here. 

here is a good example of one of marco's wine dinner menu.

i wish i had gotten some better pictures, these do not do his food justice.